Field Notes Blog

It's the time of year when we see lots of gratitude sentiments. Businesses are thankful for customers, politicians are thankful for support and many of us are thankful for our families, good health, etc. These are all great but it got me to thinking about sharing something a bit more useful. In the course of my daily work and ongoing yearly business development I've experimented a lot and found some cool stuff that I now find very valuable. I've put together a list of the top 10 things that I am thankful for AND that may be of real use to the students, small business owners and nonprofit professionals I work with.

Here is the tech bounty for which I'm grateful:

High Speed Internet - I'm surprised by how many clients don't have high speed web access either because it's not available or they don't pay the extra for it. If you're in the latter category I urge you to spring for it. The speed and ease of use it provides quickly pays for itself.

Responsive Design - while it's a harsh master with a rough learning curve, I love responsive design. If you're still struggling with a site that's not mobile-friendly, not user editable or uses an alternate mobile version, upgrading is a huge time and effort saver.

Weebly - I've used a zillion website platforms from hand coding in html to Wordpress, Joomla, Drupal, asp.net and every hosting provider's horrid, built-in site builder. Weebly provides an amazing platform that I can wholeheartedly offer to clients, readily support and enjoy using myself every day.

Smartphones - thanks to these powerful handheld computers people can now take full control of their website and online marketing with nothing more than a smartphone - no pc required. All it takes is a willingness to learn.

Instagram - between Facebook's constant interface changes and the fickle randomness of what it displays I find it maddening. Instagram's focus and calm inspire me every day and help me connect and grow in meaningful ways.

Splice and FilMic- gone are the days of laboring for hours over a beefy computer with external hard drives and expensive video editing tools. We can now film, edit and upload professional quality video using an iPhone or iPad with apps that are under $10 (or free). The potential for communication, marketing and art is mind boggling.

Online Meetings - sharing my screen to demo something, provide training, handle revisions and answer questions has saved me 15+ hours a month of driving time, thereby taking a car out of traffic and decreasing my carbon footprint. Done right, online meetings are easier than ever and using them has dramatically sped up my production time and improved my ability to quickly help clients.

Online Learning - there are now 100% free, high quality online learning opportunities all around us. Some of my favorites are Duolingo and Playgrounds. If you're willing to spend a few dollars at sites like Udemy you can access thousands of courses on topics from small business marketing to graphic design.

​Online Marketplaces - thanks to sites like Envato, Big Stock Photo and others we can collaborate with and support creators around the world. Likewise millions of people can work and support their families making what they love and selling online. I use these sites to get fresh, unique content for projects.

Virtual Reality - From the first time I flew around in Second Life to when I got my Google Cardboard I've been very excited about VR. It has the potential to profoundly change everything about how we communicate and work.

So there are ten things that make my work easier, faster, more productive and more fun. I guess, overall, I'm grateful to be alive at a time when so many new technologies are coming online. Do you have any recent technological innovations that speed your work? I'd love to know so please share them in the comments and best wishes to you and your family for a warm and enjoyable Thanksgiving.

As the owner of Pixel Lava Interactive I've helped hundreds of small businesses and nonprofits with websites, graphic design and more. I hope you'll find this blog full of useful information.~ Ame Stanko